TREATMENT FROM THE JEPSON MANUAL (1993)	previous taxon | next taxon Jepson Interchange (more information)
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LILIACEAE

LILY FAMILY

Dale W. McNeal, except as specified

Perennial to trees, from membranous bulb, fibrous corm, scaly rhizome, or erect caudex
Stem generally underground
Leaves generally basal, often withering early, alternate, generally ± linear
Inflorescence various, generally bracted
Flower generally bisexual, generally radial; perianth often showy, segments generally 6 in two petal-like whorls (outer sometimes sepal-like), free or fused at base; stamens 6 (or 3 + generally 3 ± petal-like staminodes), filaments sometimes attached to perianth or fused into a tube or crown; ovary superior or inferior, chambers 3, placentas generally axile, style generally 1, stigmas generally 3
Fruit: generally capsule, loculicidal or septicidal (berry or nut)
Genera in family: ± 300 genera, 4600 species: especially ± dry temp and subtropical; many cultivated for ornamental or food; some TOXIC. Here includes genera sometimes treated in Agavaceae, Amaryllidaceae, and other families.

YUCCA

SPANISH BAYONET

Katy K. McKinney and James C. Hickman

Subshrub or tree-like, sometimes dying after fruit
Leaves rosetted (basal or elevated on branches), 2–15 dm, linear, stiff, sword-like, stoutly spine-tipped; bases ± expanded; edges generally curved up
Inflorescence: panicle, dense; flowers pendent
Flower 2–13 cm; perianth parts 6 in 2 petal-like whorls, generally ± fused, ± white, fleshy, waxy; stamens 6, filaments ± thick, fleshy; ovary superior, style short, stigma 3-lobed, concave or dome-like
Fruit: generally capsule
Seeds ± many in 2 rows per chamber, black, often flat
Species in genus: ± 40 species: especially dry sw North America
Etymology: (Haitian: yuca, or manihot, because young inflorescences sometimes roasted for food)
Pollinated at night by small moths that simultaneously lay eggs in ovary.

Native

Y. whipplei Torr.

OUR LORD'S CANDLE

Plant dies after fruit
Stems ± 0 aboveground; rosettes 1–many, very dense
Leaf generally 40–100 cm, flat or ± 3-angled, ± gray-green; expanded base ± 4–7 cm, 4–7 cm wide, ± white to greenish; margins minutely serrate
Inflorescence 2–40 dm, not appearing heavy; peduncle 15–35 dm; branches and flowers very many
Flower: perianth ± 3 cm, ± spheric, white, generally purple-tipped; filaments linear below, tip angled, club-like; pistil 1–2 cm, stigmas domed, clear-papillate
Fruit spreading to erect
Ecology: Chaparral, coastal or desert scrub
Elevation: < 2500 m.
Bioregional distribution: s Sierra Nevada (especially e slope), s South Coast Ranges, Southwestern California, sw edge Mojave Desert
Distribution outside California: n Baja California
Flowering time: Apr–May
Growth form highly variable; branched plants from desert edge have been called subsp. cespitosa (M.E. Jones) A.L. Haines; late-branching coastal plants have been called subsp. intermedia A.L. Haines; large, unbranched plants from s slope SnGb and SnBr have been called subsp. parishii (M.E. Jones) A.L. Haines; rhizomed colonial plants from s SCoR have been called subsp. percursa A.L. Haines
Recent taxonomic note: Warrants treatment in segregate genus Hesperoyucca Trel. as H. whipplei (Torr.) Trel.
Horticultural information: DRN, SUN, DRY: 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24.